Oakley mayor enters AD11 race

Oakley Mayor Jim Frazier will run for state Assembly next year in a newly carved district that encompasses most of East Contra Costa County and a majority of Solano County.

The 52-year-old Democratic general contractor’s decision to enter the state contest also ends speculation that he will challenge Contra Costa Supervisor Mary Nejedly Piepho in her re-election bid.

Unlike an upstream fight against a two-term incumbent supervisor, the new 11th Assembly District is wide open. It includes Antioch, Brentwood, Oakley, Knightsen, Discovery Bay, Bryon and Bethel Island along with Vacaville, Fairfield, Rio Vista and Isleton. (Click here to see a map of the district.)

Frazier is the first to officially declare his candidacy in the heavily Democratic 11th District (19 percentage points Democratic) although others are evaluating the option. Open seats typically draw more people.

Campaign strategy will also change under the state’s new top-two primary rule.

In the past, the primary winner who hailed from the predominant party was almost guaranteed victory in the general election. Next year, the top two vote-getters in the June contest will face off again in November regardless of party affiliation.

Jobs, education and transportation will top Frazier’s policy priority list, he said via telephone prior to his scheduled 4 p.m. today announcement press conference in Oakley.

Frazier also announced endorsements from Democratic Reps. John Garamendi and Jerry McNerney, state Sens. Mark DeSaulnier and Lois Wolk, and Assemblywoman Susan Bonilla.

He was elected to the Oakley City Council in 2008 after serving on the city’s planning commission and the Contra Costa Transportation Authority’s citizen advisory committee.

Lisa Vorderbrueggen

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Oh, gee, Garamendi, DeSaulnier and Bonilla have made their choice. Let’s all defer to these overgrown political hacks and do whatever they say. Useless legislators like them are a major reason why the public has something like a 13% approval rating for the Legislature and Congress. Garamendi may be defeated in his new congressional district because the people of Solano County and points north have little tolerance for his tired, disproven “progressive” ideology. At least he would actually live in his new district — his own vote could decide that close election.

lars54

Oakley has never had an assembly memeber, so this would be way cool. I agree with Frazier, jobs is priority one now, anything the political leadership can do to put people back to work has to go on the table. This recession has been miserable, all my construction buddies are out of work or working occasionally, some have lost homes, it’s heartbreaking. If elected, I hope Frazier makes jobs, jobs, jobs, the focus of his work in Assembly.